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<title>The Grand and Glorious Cycle of the Earth by GretchenSinister</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22382377">The Grand and Glorious Cycle of the Earth</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/GretchenSinister/pseuds/GretchenSinister'>GretchenSinister</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rise of the Guardians (2012)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M, sick fic? care fic?</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 16:35:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>944</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22382377</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/GretchenSinister/pseuds/GretchenSinister</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Original Prompt: "Jack nipping Bunny’s nose just as Bunny sneezes. Do whatever you like with it."</p><p>Bunny sneezed? But that must mean Bunny’s sick! And that must be REALLY SERIOUS and dealt with RIGHT AWAY. That’s what Jack thinks, at least.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>E. Aster Bunnymund/Jack Frost</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>85</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>JackRabbit Short Fics</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Grand and Glorious Cycle of the Earth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Originally posted on Tumblr on 8/14/2015.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Augh! What the—Bunny, why?” Jack wiped at his mouth with his sleeve.<br/><br/>Bunny didn’t immediately respond, choosing instead to blow his nose on a pale green handkerchief, fold it up again, and set it on the bedside table. “Jack,” he said, “I feel like I should be the one to ask that question. I was just lying here, and you decide to breeze in through the window and try to bite me. That’s not something I could’ve expected, and being sneezed on is probably the mildest reaction you could expect.”<br/><br/>“You sneezed into my open mouth,” Jack said, making a face. “And I wasn’t going to bite you, I was going to nip you. You know, nipping at your nose?”<br/><br/>“Cute,” Bunny said skeptically. “Now, I’m not really in the mood for—whatever you’re going for, so…”<br/><br/>“Yeah, I know you said you could sense some big important mystical Earth-thing happening and you’d be busy for a few weeks or a couple months, and that you couldn’t be disturbed, but it’s been a few weeks and you can’t keep that kind of concentration for so long and also be someone I like spending time with, so I…” Jack scuffed his foot on the floor. “I just wanted to visit you.”<br/><br/>“It’s still not a good time,” Bunny said.<br/><br/>Jack looked up to see Bunny heaping more blankets around himself. He narrowed his eyes and glanced around the room. Empty mugs everywhere. One folded handkerchief and several not-so-nicely-folded ones in a little heap on the floor by the bedside table. The pile of quilts, even though it wasn’t really cold in the Warren. Something that looked like a tiny teapot, and a jar of salt. A recently used mortar and pestle. The general fact that Bunny was lying in bed at all even though it was daylight. “You’ve made yourself sick with everything you’ve been doing!” Jack picked up a mug against Bunny’s grumbling protests and smelled it. Yeah, that was definitely something only people who needed it as medicine would drink. “Well, I’m not leaving now! This is serious! What can make a Guardian sick? No one’s told me, even though you all have told me a lot, so it must be rare, and dangerous, and—you weren’t even strong enough to send for anyone else! And what about me, Bunny? Maybe you think it’s just fun, but—but I really do care if something’s happening to you! You could have at least called me! I mean, that kind of—well, we can talk about it when you’re better.”<br/><br/>Bunny groaned and covered his face with his hands.<br/><br/>“Hey!” Jack said, trying to sound sharp even though he was developing a lump in his throat, both because Bunny was clearly so sick and they all might have lost him without even <em>knowing</em>, and because it was becoming clear that Bunny thought they were casual enough that he didn’t think of Jack as someone to call when he was in danger. “There’s independence and then there’s recklessness, and I am very well acquainted with both!”<br/><br/>Bunny groaned again. “It’s not what you think,” he muttered.<br/><br/>“Oh, yeah? Then what is it?”<br/><br/>Bunny closed his eyes and Jack stepped forward, concerned. “All right, all right, relax,” Bunny said. “So. That mystical Earth-thing that I was talking about…that was a load of nonsense. What I knew was coming wasn’t mystical at all. It happens every year, and it’s…well…this.” He gestured to all the paraphernalia of sickness.<br/><br/>“What! You get sick every year? That’s even more worrying—”<br/><br/>Bunny held up one hand. “It’s already hard enough for me to admit this Jack, please, just let me…so. Okay. I’m not sick. I just have a lot of symptoms, and the thing is, I knew this was coming because I know the growth cycle of every plant in the Warren and I…” He sighed. “I have allergies to the pollen of one particular plant. Very bad ones. And that’s what this is about.” He burrowed more deeply into the blankets. “It’s so embarrassing, I know. But it doesn’t last too long and I just didn’t want you to laugh at me while my head’s stuffed up.”<br/><br/>Jack had been staring at him open-mouthed ever since he said the word ‘allergies’. Now, he managed to compose himself a little and at least close his mouth. Bunny wasn’t dying! Bunny would probably call on him if he was! But only if he thought Jack wouldn’t laugh at him? “Bunny,” Jack said, “you can tell me when it’s important that I don’t laugh at you. I mean…it doesn’t cross my mind that much anyway. I care about you, and I hope you don’t think—that is, when I laugh when we’re together it’s because I’m happy, not because I’m laughing at you.”<br/><br/>“You see me sometimes when I’m not very dignified,” Bunny said doubtfully.<br/><br/>“And I’m happy because you let me see that side of you,” Jack replied. “I just…I want to be the person you’d call if you really were sick.”<br/><br/>Bunny smiled a little. “All right, then. Though it’s pretty unlikely, Frostbite.” He paused for a moment. “I’d laugh at myself, though, if I felt better. A nature Guardian with a pollen allergy…”<br/><br/>“If you hear me laughing later, it’s just going to be with relief that you’re not dying,” Jack said. “Though you can never know what’s starting to grow in these cups. I’ll just take care of these—don’t worry, I watched a Ghibli film once—”<br/><br/>Bunny laughed, and Jack grinned to hear it, even if it did turn into another sneeze.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Comments from Tumblr:</p><p>bowlingforgerbils said: This was so cute!!!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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